


don't doubt your worth

by BookRockShooter



Series: post s6 things to help me cope [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, He's mostly just rambling to get everything off his chest but Keith actually makes him feel better, Implied Relationships, Lance opens up more this time, Langst, M/M, More convos yeet, Post-Canon, Post-Season/Series 06
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2019-05-24 15:53:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14957594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BookRockShooter/pseuds/BookRockShooter
Summary: Lance is made fun of by his friends again, and apparently Keith thinks that he now needs to comfort Lance because it.Not that Lance needs it, though it does help. Maybe. Just a little.-*post season 6*





	don't doubt your worth

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to write more post s6 things so here I am lmao (also rip my ability to title again lmAO)
> 
> So this is technically meant to take place after the other fic I recently posted (midnight conversations) but this can be read alone! Just know that Keith and Lance had a little convo after the events of s6 and consider each other friends :)
> 
> I just,,, really wanted Lance to talk to somebody who would actually make him feel better,,, idk (also idk if I made Pidge and Hunk seem, like, way too harsh? I still like them, but if I'm being honest, they didn't treat Lance the best this past season, so that's why they're a little,,, eh idk;; I hope the fic is still enjoyable;; lmk tho!)
> 
> Enjoy (hopefully)!

They're three days into their trip back to Earth, and Lance is feeling lonely.

He's talked to the others a few times, of course - he always wishes everyone a good night on the comms, he asks Shiro how he's feeling at least twice a day (he always gets the same answer of “Fine, just glad to be back.”), and Coran occasionally rambles to all of them about what he thinks Earth is going to be like, and Lance of course can't miss the opportunity to tell outrageous lies about its customs. He's almost certain that Coran believed him when he told him that dabbing was the usual way humans greeted each other, and he can't wait to see Coran greet everyone with a dab. It'll be hilarious, he's sure.

Other than that, though, Lance hasn't spoken directly to anybody else. He's tried Allura a few times, but she always ends up being busy with Romelle, and he can't exactly blame her. Like, she finally had another Altean besides Coran to talk to; he can't take that away from her just because he wants to ramble to her about dumb things, like his feelings. As if.

And then there's Hunk and Pidge, his best friends in the universe... maybe. Lance always gets uncomfortable, now, when he hears their voices on the comms, and he always falls silent when Hunk tells the team stories of his family, or when Pidge excitedly chatters about all of the possible new technology there could be back home. Lance always has to bite back snarky comments, so it's safer for him to just... not talk. Not that anyone's seemed to notice.

Well, Shiro had, for the most part. He'll sometimes try to bring him into the conversation, to which Lance always says, "Ah, c'mon, it's fine. Hey, Hunk, what was the one story you told me about your one sister? Tell that one again!" Shiro always drops it, eventually.

And Keith... Lance isn't sure if he's noticed at all, because he hasn't spoken to anybody, as far as Lance is concerned. Well, he probably talks to Shiro and his mom, since the three of them are all sharing Black. And he spoke to Lance the night before they left, which Lance still thinks about... a lot. It's helped him sleep, remembering how nice (albeit awkward) it was to talk to Keith. He wants to do that again, even if he can't admit it to anyone but himself. And Kaltenecker. He talks to the cow, too, of course he does. Kaltenecker doesn't make fun of him when he talks about how useless and detached from the team he feels.

At the thought of his cow, he turns around in his seat to state at her. Kaltenecker stares back impassively.

"Kaltenecker," Lance says dramatically, "you're the only one who understands me."

The cow just moos at him, and then he hears laughter from the comms. Lance feels his face start to burn. He'd forgotten to turn the comms off. Naturally.

 _"Did you just talk to the cow?"_ comes Pidge's teasing voice, and Lance scowls.

"Shut up," he grumbles, sliding down in his seat and crossing his arms over his chest. He's glad the lions can go on autopilot, because he can't fly manually when he's in this position. He'd probably crash if he tried. Would the others pay attention to him then? He's not sure.

The comms crackle, and then Hunk says, _"How's Kaltenecker doing, anyway? She still healthy and all?"_

Lance straightens so he can respond. "Well, duh. Why wouldn't she be?"

 _"Don't take this the wrong way,"_ Pidge starts, and Lance thinks _ah, that means I’ll take it the wrong way_ with a sigh, _"you're just not the first choice we would've made for who gets to watch the cow. You're not the ideal person to be in charge of keeping something alive."_

Lance stares at the comms, brow furrowed. Well, _that_ was uncalled for. "And why's that?" he snaps. "She's _my_ cow."

 _"I thought she was everyone's cow,"_ Coran says in confusion, and Pidge says, _"Because you're always distracted, y'know? If you can't focus properly, how can you possibly keep a living creature healthy?"_

"Hey!" he yells, indignant, and then Hunk says, _"Oh, is he still hung up on Allura? I'd hoped not."_

Allura's, _"What?"_ is nearly drowned out by Lance's mortified shriek, and then Shiro says, _"Okay, how about we all just take a break from conversation? Allura, if it's alright, Krolia and I would like to come over and discuss some things. Black's comms are acting up."_

_"Uh, yes, of course."_

Lance winces at the sound of Allura's voice, and then he shuts off the group comm, a sick feeling in his stomach. He curls up in the seat and tries to calm himself down.

He wants to think that Hunk and Pidge meant no harm with their words, but it's hard to convince himself. Like, what kind of people imply that their friend can't have a pet or that said friend only focuses on his attraction to people? Not the good kind, he knows that.

A beep catches his attention, but he doesn't bother looking up until a voice says, "Lance?"

Keith has apparently turned on their private video comm, and Lance hates the look of concern on his friend's face. It doesn't look right. Not that he doesn't think Keith can feel concern for people, no, it's just... Lance isn't used to it being directed at him, even now.

"What?" he mumbles, sniffling, and he freezes when he realizes that he's crying. Oh, god, he can't cry in front of Keith, not for the second time in less than a week.

He wipes his eyes frantically, and Keith says, "Uh, are you okay?"

"Gee, I dunno," Lance snaps, turning to glare at the wall of the cockpit. "My friends were just making fun of me for no reason, and then they went and reminded everyone of my stupid crush on Allura, and now you're here watching me be dumb and cry. How do you think I feel?"

"Okay, fine, that was a stupid question," Keith admits, and Lance just rolls his eyes. "But, uh, can I just- I don't know how your friendship with Hunk and Pidge works, exactly, but... that was uncalled for, right? What they said? I'm not, like, reading too far into the situation, am I?"

Lance sighs in relief. So someone else picked up on it, too. "Glad to know I wasn't overreacting," he says, finally turning to look at Keith. The other paladin is staring at him, the concern still there, but there’s now a faint trace of what looks to be anger, too. Or maybe just frustration, though Lance isn’t sure what he needs to be frustrated about. “Hey, how are you talking to me, anyway? Shiro said that your comms were acting up.”

“Oh,” Keith says, and he looks away, expression turning embarrassed. “I… may have asked them to leave so I could talk to you alone. I figured that, if you did want to talk, the less people bothering you, the better. Is- is that weird? I don’t know.” He’s starting to look more flustered now, face coloring, and Lance can’t help but smile. It’s strangely endearing.

“It’s alright,” Lance says, and Keith stops talking, donning an awkward smile. “I appreciate it, man. I guess… maybe I do need someone to talk to. Maybe. I dunno.” He crosses his arms again, feeling conflicted. On one hand, he does want to just let everything out – all of the emotions he’s kept hidden for the past few months, all of his thoughts on these people he’s grown to think of as family (even if some of them are acting less-than-pleasantly as of late), just… everything.

But he doesn’t want to bother Keith with it. Just the other day, when they last spoke in person, Keith talked about stuff that was upsetting him, and Lance knows that he barely covered everything that was bothering him. Lance doesn’t want Keith to have more things to think about. It’s better for him to just wallow in his misery alone.

“Actually,” Lance says, forcing a more cheerful smile, “I’m good, now that I think about it! You don’t need to be worried about me. I’m all good.” He winks to try and be more convincing, but it feels weird, and then he laughs awkwardly.

Keith’s face is still red for some reason, but he doesn’t seem to notice as he frowns at Lance. “That wasn’t very convincing,” he says flatly, and Lance stares at him for a second longer before sighing and dropping the act. Might as well talk, if Keith’s offering to listen. He tips his head back and stares out at the stars they’re passing by, then takes a deep breath before he starts talking.

“I guess… I don’t know. The past few months have been weird. First there was Shiro – well, fake Shiro? – being kind of a jerk, ignoring all of my suggestions. I was just trying to help, but he… acted like I was just being a nuisance. Yeah, he apologized afterwards, but it hurt, y’know? And then… this one is dumber, but–”

“Your thoughts aren’t dumb,” Keith interrupts softly. Lance pauses and looks at his friend. Keith’s eyes are soft, and Lance continues to stare for a few more seconds before clearing his throat and continuing. His heart is beating oddly fast, for some reason. He chalks it up to his feeling anxious over spilling hos thoughts.

“I still have this d- this crush on Allura, which is stupidly obvious,” he mutters. “She’s just… so cool, and smart, and pretty, and I’m… never gonna be enough for her. I- I was trying to talk about this to Pidge and Hunk, when she was still with Lotor, and… they laughed at me. Maybe I overreacted, but… I was really upset that they just- just laughed at my feelings like that. Like, I’m sorry that I can’t control who I fall for!” He’s getting worked up now, and usually, he would’ve tried to calm down, but this time, he doesn’t bother. “They were acting really rude, telling me that Allura and Lotor were destined for each other and maybe they never actually said it explicitly, but I know that what they meant was that _I’d_ never be good enough for her. And, like, I already knew that, but having them – the people who I consider my best friends – practically confirm those thoughts wasn’t… wasn’t nice. It freaking hurt.”

He’s tearing up again, and he knows that it’s about more than just being rejected by Allura. He’s felt, for the longest time, like the least important member of Voltron. His friends acting the way they did basically set that in stone – if his feelings weren’t important to them, why would _any_ part of him be important to the team?

“Lance,” Keith murmurs, sounding pained, and Lance regrets speaking. This is exactly what he didn’t want: making Keith upset over his personal issues. “Lance, no, that’s not true. I- okay, I’m not good at this, but please bear with me.” Lance glances at him again, and Keith looks extremely uncomfortable, but he’s still looking right at Lance, like he wants to actually help him. Like he’s important enough to be helped. “Maybe you’re not the one meant for Allura, and maybe you… maybe you are. Either way, you need to understand that it doesn’t matter. You are still incredibly important to all of us, whether or not the princess likes you back. And yeah, Pidge and Hunk’s words were really uncalled for, and I’m sorry for what they said.” Keith’s eyes flash with some dark emotion for a second, and Lance is frozen in his seat, just staring at Keith. At his eyes. _They’re so blue,_ he thinks absentmindedly, and Keith keeps talking. “But… look, I’m just trying to say that Allura being attracted to you doesn’t make you any worthier for happiness than you already are. And fake Shiro ignoring you was just because he was, uh, not the real Shiro. You need to remember that we all care for you, and you’re a part of this team. And that we’re friends. You… you matter.” Lance keeps staring, mouth slightly open now, and he watches Keith squirm in his seat slightly. “Did… did that help? I don’t know. Like I said, I’m bad at… this. Comforting. That sort of thing. I hope you feel better, at least.” His face is red again.

Lance finally finds his voice again. “You really took the whole ‘being more nice to each other’ thing seriously,” he says, giving a half-hearted laugh.

“I also took the ‘let’s be friends’ thing seriously,” Keith deadpans, and Lance smiles slightly. “Seriously, I- I meant what I said, okay? You’re important, no matter what people might suggest.”

Lance suddenly wishes he could hold Keith’s hand again. It was weirdly comforting when it happened a few days ago. “Thank you, Keith,” he says, sincerely, and Keith nods, still looking upset. “That… did actually help,” he then admits, scratching the back of his neck and looking anywhere but the video comm screen. “Maybe I’ll replace Pidge and Hunk with you.” His attempt at a joke falls flat, and he feels himself grimace just saying it.

“I wouldn’t go that far just yet,” Keith says, sounding a little more amused this time.

“What?” Lance says, grinning at him again. “Don’t think you could handle being best friends with someone this cool?” He then makes the finger-guns symbol, because that gesture will _always_ be cool.

“I don’t know,” Keith says, and he’s smirking in a way that Lance would have perceived as flirtatious from anyone else. It still makes his face warm up. “I think I’d be up for the challenge.”

Lance doesn’t get a chance to respond, because then Shiro and Keith’s mom walk back into the cockpit. “Oh, Lance,” Shiro says, feigning being surprised, and Lance wonders if Shiro will ever improve his acting abilities, because that wasn’t at all convincing. “How are you doing?”

“Pretty good,” he admits. “Talking to Keith… helped. So, yeah. I’m good.” He flashes one more smile at Keith, and his friend smiles back, eyes warmer than they were earlier. Lance decides that Keith looking that happy was something that needs to happen way more often. “I’m gonna take a nap now,” he decides. “Thanks for talking to me, man. Again.”

“No problem,” Keith says, and then they each turn off their comms.

After making sure Kaltenecker was fine watching herself for a few hours, Lance sighs and curls up, using his jacket as a makeshift pillow.

He falls asleep feeling more content that he has in months.

**Author's Note:**

> Alright hopefully that was enjoyable to read haha
> 
> I kinda wanna make this a series..? Just a buncha post-s6 fics of Keith and Lance slowly growing closer and seeing each other as really good friends (and maybe something more if I keep writing idk-). I just really love them both and miss their interactions so I'm writing fic to help myself feel better LMAO
> 
> Anyway! I hope y'all enjoyed! Have a good day/night!


End file.
